so this is probably my second favorite part of every year. my first is the winter, because it’s cold. or at least cool, anyways. i live in texas so it doesn’t really get cold, it just gets…….chilly, i suppose. anyways, the month of august would be my second favorite part of the year. which i guess is kind of a strange thing to say, because i mean……it’s august. when i think “excitement”, august isn’t usually one of the first things that pops in my head. probably not even one of the first 20 things that pop in my head. still, i find myself strangely drawn to this month each time it rolls around. there’s just so much that goes on in august. in my own life, it’s like my month off. no more summer school, the fall semester doesn’t start til the absolute end of the month, so i’m left with about 3 weeks to do whatever i want to do and not have to worry about extreme amounts of responsibility.

one of the more peculiar things about this time of year is that many things are winding down to conclusion, while many others are just beginning. particularly in the sports world. baseball’s season is nearing its end, the games are that much more alive with excitement, and there is just a nice buzz as we wait to see who will make it into the postseason. football, on the other hand, is just beginning. training camps open in the pro arena, colleges begin holding their two-a-days, all of the writers are hurrying to make their predictions, fans begin boasting their favorite teams, and the low rumble of the american football monster steadily grows to a barbaric yawp as the first oblong projectile is sent soaring into the air at the close of the month.

relationally, a lot occurs as well. old friends reunite to share stories of the summer gone. the coffeeshops are full of groups and couples that laugh over the misadventures that occured while they were parted from each other and old jokes that never lose their luster are told anew, as reminiscience takes us through the history of why we choose to spend time with that person in front of us or those people around us. new friends are told farewell as you leave your camp or vacation. promises to keep in touch that will soon be forgotten or broken are consciously made and those people are soon left behind as mere memories. friends unmet await your arrival as you find yourself with a new roommate, or in a crowded classroom surrounded by unfamiliar faces. one of those unfamiliar faces could end up being a future spouse, a future enemy, or someone that could end up saving your life.

whatever the situation may be, the summer’s end is an exciting time to me….